VOLVOX: Making Narrative Medicine Happen Alumni Speaker Series

Stories That Endure | Identity, Meaning, and Personhood in Dignity Therapy

Speaker: Ellen Ozier, MSW, LCSW, APHSW-C, OSW-C, CPA'24 in Narrative Medicine

Moderator: Cherie Henderson, PhD, SPS'14 in Narrative Medicine

In serious illness, threats to dignity can contribute to suffering, demoralization, and diminished quality of life. In this talk, Ellen Ozier will introduce Dignity Therapy, a brief, narrative-based psychotherapeutic intervention for patients facing serious, life-limiting illness. 

The practice uses a structured interview process to guide reflection on meaningful aspects of a person's life, support the articulation of messages for others, and enable collaborative creation of a legacy document. Evidence suggests that Dignity Therapy can strengthen patients' sense of dignity, reduce stress and demoralization, enhance meaningful and purpose, and improve quality of life. 

The presentation will highlight how the practices of attention, representation, and affiliation support the relational and interpretive work of Dignity Therapy.